礼节美语 Business Etiquette 136 Performance Evaluation (2)

　　部门经理Fay找手下Steve来，讨论他的年度中期工作表现，除了上班迟到，Steve还有哪些缺点呢？
S: OK...what other issues are there with my performance?
F: Well, like I said before, you are very enthusiastic and we appreciate that, but sometimes you can be a bit over-the-top.
S: What do you mean by that?
F: Well, sometimes your co-workers feel that you are too loud, or you tell inappropriate jokes during office hours.
S: Who said that about me? Tell me their name!
Fay说Steve有时热情得over-the-top, 有点过头，办公室同事觉得Steve太吵，而且还开一些不合时宜的玩笑。Steve气得不行，问是谁在背后打他的小报告。
F: You know I can't do that and I don't think it's important who feels this way. The truth is that maybe you could try to tone¹ down your volume and be more careful of what you say.
S: I think people are too sensitive.
F: That could be true, but we all have to work together so it's probably best not to step on people's toes.
S: OK...I guess I can try to tone it down.
F: Can you handle another criticism²?
S: Sure...why not? Bring it on!
Fay表示，谁说的并不重要，她也不能告诉Steve，但她建议Steve还是要tone down your volume说话小声点，Don't step on people's toes. 别踩到别人脚指头，意思是不要冒犯别人。
F: I would recommend that you work on following through with projects. You have a lot of good ideas and you start quite a few different projects, but many times you don't follow through. Then all these ideas are just floating around but nothing is really getting done.
S: But I'm really more of an idea person. I come up with concepts³ and start them, but the legwork is really not my style.
Fay建议Steve做项目要follow through. 做事有始有终。 Steve好主意虽然多，可nothing is really getting done.没有什么是真正落实了的。Steve说自己就是擅长出点子，I'm more of an idea person. 但是具体跑腿儿、落实就不是他的风格了，the legwork is not my style. Legwork意思是跑腿儿的活，具体工作。
F: Honestly Steve, You have a lot of talent, but if you don't complete tasks, you won't get promoted.
S: Well, thanks for the advice. I'll try to work on that.
F: Again, I can't stress enough how grateful we are for all the work you do. Overall⁴, you are a quality employee and we're glad to have you.
S: Thanks for saying that, Fay. I appreciate it.
F: Sure. Thanks for stopping by and we'll do this again in six months.
S: See you then!
Steve保证，他会努力改正。I'll try to work on that. 谈话结束前，Fay 再次强调，Steve是优秀员工，a quality employee，公司能有他这样的员工很高兴。We're glad to have you.

1 tone   

n.语气，音调，气度，色调；vt.（up）增强

参考例句：

• There was a tone of mockery in his voice.他说话的语气含有嘲笑的意味。
• Holmes used an informal,chatty tone in his essays.霍姆斯在文章中语气轻松随便。

2 criticism   

n.批评，批判，指责；评论，评论文章

参考例句：

• Some youth today do not allow any criticism at all.现在有些年轻人根本指责不得。
• It is wrong to turn a deaf ear to other's criticism.对别人的批评充耳不闻是错误的。

3 concepts   

n.概念( concept的名词复数 )；观念；想法；总的印象

参考例句：

• He speaks in concepts rather than specifics. 他讲话时尽用抽象概念，而不谈具体。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The word "beauty" comprehends various concepts. “美”这个词包括许多概念。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

4 overall   

n.工作服，工装裤；全面的，全体的

参考例句：

• The shop assistant was wearing a white overall.那店员穿着白色的工作服。
• How much will it cost overall?一共多少钱？